Seto x Kisara Week Prompts
by Kisara Strife
Summary: Written for Seto x Kisara Week 2015. A collection of eight oneshots written for the pairing of Seto and Kisara covering blueshipping (Seto and Kisara), mizushipping (Priest Seto and Kisara) and effectshipping (Kaibaman and Blue-Eyed Maiden). A really fun and challenging project that I'm glad to have been a part of!
1. Mission

**Author's Note:** Hi everyone! It's been quite a while since I uploaded anything new, but the fantastic motivation of a Seto x Kisara Week on Tumblr has really got some inspiration bubbling again. I hope you all like this! It's very loosely based on the prompt "Person A is an assassin hired to kill Person B who is an important person AU".

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The men told her it was simple. Hers was a very small part to play. Just stay in the cage and get the boy's attention. Why they had to kill this boy was something she didn't quite understand; he was the son of a High Priest who had killed a lot of people.

So he too had to die. That's what the adults said.

It sounded simple.

So she had been bundled into the wheeled cage by her mother, kissed on the forehead and told she was doing the will of the gods. And out they had set from their small encampment of tents many nights ago, her father one of the group travelling south along the Nile and towards Memphis, the capital of their land. The village where the boy lived was a long day's travel from Meidum and the deteriorating mastaba pyramid of Pharaoh Sneferu.

Two months on the dusty road had brought them most of the way from their settlement on the border of the Mitanni lands. They hadn't lived out there in the Egyptian hinterlands forever; the older adults often told tales of a place called Elna, the place of blood and tragedy. The place the High Priest had turned red with his dark magic.

Yawning in the dark evening, she shivered and looked around for the blanket her mother had gifted to her on their departure.

"I've hidden it, little one. We've seen the boy riding from the village earlier today; tonight is the night, gods willing."

Her kindest uncle smiled as he whispered, fingers brushing along the outside of her wheeled cage – her personal sanctuary. During the day and the high sun it was a saviour from the harsh heat, with torn canvas blocking out the searing winds and protecting her pale skin. But that changed when Ra dipped below the horizon, signalling the journey of Horus into the underworld and his rebirth as the shining sun disk rose the next morning – then her casings and tokens were stowed away beneath the wagon and she was given the guise of prisoner.

"Be ready Kisara, this is what we have been preparing for. This is why the gods sent you to us."

A kiss on her brow through the cage bars and she nodded her head, a small smile barging out; her father always told her of how the gods sent her to their people; sent her to avenge all of their loved ones killed without proper burial, forever wandering and fleeing both Anubis' judgement and Ammit's ravenous jaws. The ghosts demanded retribution and the goddess Ma'at, the goddess of truth and justice, had sent them a powerful weapon to wreak that revenge.

So she had practiced for as long as she could remember; letting her mind slip into unawareness and letting the great Dragon take control. Years of perfecting the technique still had its problems; countless times she had woken on the ground to see the damage her monster had caused ... the damage she had caused.

But it was all in the plan of the gods and they had sent her for this mission.

So Kisara woke with start a few hours later, a different uncle rapping along the wooden bars. It was time to put their plan into action. She cried and called for help, her father and uncles shouted obscenities and talked about how they would sell her for a high price once they reached Memphis. Once or twice she even believed their squabbling over a reasonable price.

What would happen after the boy was killed?

Watching as the campfire sent sparks into the inky night sky, the young girl shivered and longed for her mother's blanket again. If she was doing the will of the gods, then why was she always locked up like some kind of animal she had seen pass by in many caravans? The fire looked inviting and she wouldn't mind sitting upon her father's knee as he told some tale of the barbarian Hittites to the east, but he never done such things around the other men. When they were around she had to be content with a rushed smile and whispered words. They feared her too much to let her walk freely amongst them.

A rustle in the nearby scrub drew her attention and she took a breath to call the men; this was what they had been waiting for. The breath caught in her throat and the child watched as he sprinted from the bushes and soundlessly made it to the cage's locked door. Remembering her mission, Kisara scooted closer to the bars and sent a nervous look to the crackling fire.

"Who are you?"

She needed to hear his name; to be sure she was taking revenge on the correct person. He looked about her age, maybe a year or two older. All she had been told was his name and that his father had been a very bad man. Simple. And her small part was to let the Dragon take control.

"Shhh, I'll let you out. Come."

She watched in awe as he undid some kind of catch and swung the cage door open. She should have called to her father, her uncles, their comrades. But all she did was let the boy pull her forward and leaned against him as he helped her out of the wagon; what a liberty! Looking around for any sign of her blanket, she panicked as a friend of her father finished relieving his bladder and appeared from the bushes; she had never liked that particular man.

"You little-!"

In an instant the big man had been flipped onto his back and the boy's hand found hers.

"Now!"

This wasn't the plan she had been taught for years. Her mission was to kill the High Priest's son, not be rescued by some stranger. But she liked this boy as he pulled her with him and gave her a boost onto his horse. He was strong and she felt safe for the first time in her life as he sat behind her and urged the horse into a startled gallop.

"They got away! The girl ran away!"

The girl ... they always called her that. Never her name, but always the girl; the girl with the gift, the weapon, the power. Now she was the girl with a choice. Why was this boy saving her? She could go back to her father and her cage or she could see where this horse went.

He asked her if they were following; the horse was too fast for the journey-beleaguered camels her convoy owned. No pursuers. But he jumped from the horse then and told her to carry on to the next town – maybe the Priest's son would be in that town? She knew his name and knew her mission with or without her entourage of fearful captors. But she felt safe with this new boy and his kind eyes.

Turning as the horse galloped on and her rescuer lagged behind the animal, she shouted above the pounding of hooves.

"What is your name?"

"Seto!"

Somewhere in her young chest, below what would develop into a breast she felt her heart skip a beat. That was the name she had been trained to recognise. Even as the horse continued on its panicked path, the girl felt her head pound and her vision clouded over; the Dragon wanted to show itself and she had her mission.

But she also had a choice.

In the burning remains of a village to the east of Meidum, the unknowing son of a High Priest watched with hateful tears as the slaver he had tripped, the very man responsible for his mother's death fell prey to the mighty monster that appeared in the smouldering sky.

So the Legendary Dragon earned its reputation as a killer that night, the white lightning scorching the sand black and roasting the corpse black as a crisp. Revenge was nowhere near as sweet as the child had been led to believe. Rebellion on the other hand had a much more satisfying tang to it.

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 **A/n- Thanks for taking the time to read everyone, I really appreciate it! xxx**


	2. Hero

**Author's Note:** This chapter is based on the prompt " _Save the Last Dance For Me_ " but could also satisfy the " _Modern Times_ " or " _I Need a Hero_ " prompts too. I hope you all like it.

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The room floundered past her again in a blur of colours and gowns. The tune was pleasant – a little more up-tempo than a waltz. And it would have been the perfect melody to interject a nice jive step. But no, concrete-for-legs was dragging her from one end of the polished floor to the other. Even the supposed twirls were uncomfortable; the little tubby man could barely reach above her head and snapped her back towards him. He was probably afraid she would make a run from him if she got an arm's length away.

The irony was that she was seriously considering the break for freedom.

But alas, that would be crass and they needed this fat little stock-holder on their side if their new venture in Japan was to truly take roots. She was no fool and knew they needed as many allies as possible in this new market zone.

Oooops, ducking beneath the short man's arm again, Kisara flashed what she hoped passed for an amused smile. Hiding a grimace as the idiot's watch caught on a pin in her hair, she ducked lower and tried her hardest to feign enjoyment instead of contempt.

This was all her sister's fault. Giving the room a quick scout, she tried to find any sign of her big sis amongst the bustling corporate bodies. Knowing her, she was probably chatting up some journalist or inside-trader to get information from. Then again, Duke Devlin had been spotted on the red carpet outside the glamorous function and her sister had always swooned for the creator of Dungeon Dice Monsters despite her status as married.

Oww! Another toe stomped on. Scraping together the very last of her patience, she smiled and offered a small laugh to the man – he was so lucky he worked for KaibaCorp. Domino City was the city that either made or broke gaming companies in lightning-fast time. And KaibaCorp was the biggest shark in those convoluted waters. No one opposed it and no one made it in the flooded gaming market without some nod from the industry's front-runner.

In the short year since their father's death, she and her sister had already hammered out deals with Sony, Industrial Illusions and Nintendo, but the biggest battle of all was about to begin; they had to somehow get KaibaCorp on-board with their smaller company and partner in the creation of a new hybrid game; KaibaCorp's unbeatable software and the already-patented plot for a video game based on Duel Monsters. Pegasus was backing their Egyptian-based plot and had helped streamline the game ... they just needed to get a meeting with the Kaibas.

The only problem was KaibaCorp itself. The company had a long waiting list already implemented for people wanting to gain the backing of the Kaiba brothers. A waiting list that ran somewhere between two and three years ... but their production window was slated to begin in six months.

So this fat little fool could be their ticket into the protected folds of KaibaCorp.

Pulling her toe out of the way this time, Kisara heaved a heavy sigh; was it really worth all this pain? What she wouldn't give for some other man to appear and cut in on this obscenely poor excuse of a dance. Surrendering to another ducking twirl, she caught sight of her sister by the bar – the blonde in fits of giggles as she watched the pitiful scene. Her brother-in-law hovered close by and it was all Kisara could do but send out a silent plea with her eyes for help; she needed a hero.

But then she saw who her sister's husband was speaking with and immediately lost interest in her cumbersome dance partner. He was tall and had grown a lot like his famous brother, but there was no mistaking the face of KaibaCorp's media team; Mokuba Kaiba. If they could get the younger brother on their side, then surely that helped their odds of jumping up the waiting list and getting a meeting with KaibaCorp's CEO before their production window arrived.

Feeling a foot on her dress for the umpteenth time that evening, Kisara tried to formulate some excuse to escape this prancing nutcase; they didn't need a lowly stock-holder if Mokuba Kaiba was now part of the mix. It was just a pity the little man was oblivious to her plans and tried to force her into another mismatched twirl – surely she should twirl him; it would be so much easier than ducking own each time.

"Mind if I cut in?"

Almost tripping as the jowled man stood on the hem of her dark blue dress again, she bit her tongue and silently thanked whoever owned the voice; it sounded more of a statement than a question. Delighted as the little man scurried to the opposite end of the room and a hand took hers, Kisara looked up to her saviour and felt her mouth drop open.

"Y-you're Seto Kaiba!"

And there went any kind of debonair or charming introduction she might have had planned, the young woman blushed and stammered and ended up standing on his toe instead.

"You looked like you needed saving."

Finally falling into step and rescuing what little decorum she had left, Kisara remembered her manners and nodded her head.

"I did, thank you very much Mr. Kaiba."

His hand rested on her lower back and Kisara let hers rest on his arm; such a silly pleasure having a dance partner who knew how to lead and in time with the music too! A glance to the bar showed her sister wasn't laughing at her expense anymore and her brother-in-law was downing sake bombs with Mokuba Kaiba.

The melody ended then and she smiled her thanks for the dance, silly giddy thoughts running through her mind. Business was all well and good, but she couldn't deny the attraction she felt for the CEO – his younger brother's recent engagement to an American duelist by the name of Hawkins had kicked the female fans into overdrive; surely it was about time the elder brother settled down. A few of the glossy magazines had even featured clandestine snaps of the company-owner out on dates over the last few months ... and she had guiltlessly bought each magazine on the pretence of studying the man she was hoping would fund their project.

The string quartet began a slower tune then and she blinked as he stood closer and began a slow step.

"You don't mind if I steal a few more dances, do you?"

"N-not at all Mr. Kaiba."

A few more minutes ticked by and she could feel the eyes of countless women on her. Halfway through the new melody a nearby business man stood on the overlong train of his partner's dress and the two took an utterly inelegant tumble to the hardwood floor. But the flailing woman would have brought her down too had it not been for Seto Kaiba pulling her to one side with him; that was twice he had been her hero tonight.

That near-accident sent the dancers scurrying for cover and became a catalyst for a break of sorts. The musicians carried on with their trade, but the guests all wandered away towards the bar or restrooms.

"Would you like a drink?"

Sophistication and propriety gone, she blinked for a dumb second before realisation hit that the question was for her. This could be a chance to get a spoke in for their new game if she played her cards right! Nodding, she regained some composure and smiled happily.

"Yes please."

An authoritative look to the barman seemed the only order passed and Kisara allowed herself to be led to one of the tables dotted around the large function room. Only when she had seated herself did he take the other chair at the table. The same barman appeared with a tray and two drinks; how had he gotten her order right without a word? Taking the glass of wine, she offered a thankful smile to the worker and watched KaibaCorp's owner out of the corner of her eye; there was no time like the present. Setting the glass down, she sat straighter and put her work-face on.

"Allow me to introduce myself Mr. Kaiba, my name is-"

"I know who you are. You and your sister Klara are the daughters of Ken Rees; I was sorry to hear of his death last year. He was a pleasant man."

Closing her mouth again, she nodded in silence and stopped short the trip down memory lane. She didn't want to think of her father now, not when it had taken so long to get over his death. Instead she forced her mind to jump onto the next issue at hand; the waiting list KaibaCorp implemented.

"Sir, we are here in Domino in the hopes of ... what is so funny?"

Intimidating, handsome, rich; all of those things were attributes she would attach to Seto Kaiba in an instant. But rude was never something she had thought of the man until now as he chuckled quietly to himself across the table from her. His drink was half-gone as she sipped her wine and frowned.

"Kisara, Pegasus hasn't shut up about you and your sister for two months. You have a meeting already scheduled with us ahead of the waiting list – my secretary will be contacting your company tomorrow morning."

"Oh ... th-thank you Mr. Kaiba."

Now she felt like the rude one, calling him out on laughing at her. Tracing a finger around the rim of her wine glass, she wanted the ground to swallow her up. She had to get in contact with Maximillion Pegasus again and thank him – the man had been friends with her father and had been invaluable to them after his death.

"Do you work for me, Kisara?"

What kind of ignorant question was that? Of course she didn't; a year of battles with her father's so-called colleagues had led to a high-profile court case where a judge had sided with the girls and awarded them their father's company. They worked for themselves! Still, they needed KaibaCorp's backing so Kisara shook her head and smiled; she needed to stop being so defensive.

"No sir, I do not."

"Then my name is Seto, not Mr. Kaiba."

Another chuckle and she couldn't help but admire his handsome smile. Letting her shoulders drop a bit, she smiled too and shrugged; good manners were instilled in her upbringing. Taking a long sip of wine, she nodded and laughed a little too.

"Okay then, Seto it is."

His phone buzzed on the table, but the CEO declined the call and turned the device face-down. Numerous women flitted by, each one trying to gain Seto's attention but the infamous Kaiba had no interest in them. She liked his deep blue eyes, but blushed and looked away as he caught her looking and smirked smugly; this was all very surreal and she didn't know how to present herself. Their meeting was already in the bag, so that left her with no aim for another conversation. But thankfully her dancing hero kept up a tempo with his questions.

"Will you be staying in Domino long?"

"Six months at least. I'd like to see more of Japan than just this city though, it's a beautiful country."

He nodded, unable to keep a small smile from forming. Pegasus had fought tooth and nail for this small company run by two sisters and though he held very little opinion for the man's projects, Seto had to admit the game proposal seemed a certain seller. More so with graphics formulated by KaibaCorp. So they had hop-skipped the Rees sisters up the waiting list, but he had never imagined to seeing her here. Boredom had made him research the duo a few days ago, the younger sister all too familiar in his memory. And he had seen what could happen if things were ignored. Call it acceptance of some stupid past life shit or simple maturing, but this beautiful game-designer was certainly someone who caught his eye.

Even now as she toyed with the wine glass and watched a dancing duo twirl past.

"Kisara will you meet with me tomorrow?"

Looking up from her glass, she nodded and thought it an obvious answer; he had already told her of their scheduled meeting. She couldn't look away from those blue eyes, some silly girlish dream replaying itself in her mind. She had turned down countless dinners and dates from suitors in the past year – she didn't want to settle; she wanted the fairytale no matter how unrealistic it sounded. And she could focus on that just as soon as their game went into production.

"I'll tell Klara and we'll schedule a time that-"

"No Kisara. Your game is a great idea and your company will receive our backing; Mokuba and your sister can deal with the details. I'd like to see you tomorrow; no work, no contracts."

He watched as dimples appeared in her cheeks. Her shoulders dropped a bit more and the girl finally let loose a big true smile, her defensiveness gone.

"Like a date?"

Well, that word was one he hated using; it made everything sound so childish and teenage. But if a few hours in her company and maybe a dinner constituted a date, then a date it was.

"Would that be acceptable?"

Hardly able to believe what was happening, Kisara nodded her head without thinking; what had happened that sensible plan of getting the game developed and then maybe romance?

"I might have to think about it ..."

"Not too much I hope."

She smiled again as he pulled a pen from somewhere and scribbled on a napkin. When exactly being playful had turned to flirting, Kisara didn't know but she didn't care either; tonight was looking to be a very successful endeavour! And that smug smile just seemed to become more attractive every time it appeared.

"Err, sorry to interrupt but we have a situation Seto."

Mokuba Kaiba looked nothing short of apologetic as he flashed a friendly smile and scratched the back of his head, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder to indicate a growing argument between businessmen. Frowning at the drunken men, Seto sighed and shook his head; money could do a lot, but it couldn't buy class for some idiots. Reaching for the KC pin under his shirt collar, he pressed down on it and spoke lowly.

"Roland, trouble in the function room; I want them escorted from the building via the back door."

A look was passed between the brothers and Mokuba offered one more guileless smile before heading towards the debacle at the back of the room before it gained too much attention. Watching his brother, Seto made a mental note to ban the arguing men from future events held by KaibaCorp.

"I'm sorry about this, Kisara. I'll be back as soon as I can sort this out."

He left with another small smile and a gentlemanly kiss on the back of her hand. Waiting until she was sure he couldn't see, she let a goofy smile surface and picked up the napkin he had left by her glass. Her sister was almost running over to the table, having watched the interactions with rapt fascination. She folded the napkin closed before Klara could see the elegant message. Kisara blushed and smiled into her wine, refusing to give her sister any details. Instead she slipped the cloth napkin into her clutch bag, already memorizing the phone number and message written on it: " _Save the last dance for me._ "

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 **A/n- I hope you all liked this little oneshot! xxx**


	3. Checkmate

**Author's Note:** Hi again, the prompt for this chapter is " _Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better_ " and I hope you enjoy! xxx

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Sixty-four squares of alternating black and white, eight rows and eight columns with thirty-two pieces set out for battle.

Or at least a would-be battle if the rules ever stuck in her mind. So a pawn could move to the space in front of it or jump forward two if both were unoccupied ... or was it diagonal movement? Frowning in frustration, Kisara swiped her bangs out of the way and tried to recall the rules Mokuba had told her.

This was a stupid bet and had seemed a much better idea with the influence of alcohol upping the ante. So sobriety had immediately led her to Mokuba and she had pleaded with him for help.

Moving the pawn forward two spaces, she was secretly elated when the move wasn't vetoed; maybe some of the rules had stuck in place after all. Her smile soon faded though when Seto moved one of his pawns and sat back to survey her next choice.

Maybe challenging one of the most intelligent men in the world to a game of his choice wasn't such a bright idea, even with the top two buttons of her blouse open to try and distract him. Feminism was out the window today; she needed every asset to win this bet!

"Kisara it's your-"

"I'm thinking!"

"Don't hurt your head ..."

That smart comment earned him a kick under the table and she aimlessly moved one of the pawns to mirror its comrade. She hated this stupid game and hated that she had agreed to it and hated that silly smug smirk he had on his face. That wasn't true; she loved seeing that confident smile of his. Sighing with a mix of boredom and frustration, she watched as he didn't even pause and then moved another pawn only one space forward.

"Bored?"

"No, this is riveting."

He almost laughed at her sarcasm; this match up was a farce, but she was too stubborn to back out of the bet. Kisara had never liked chess – the musical of the same name was more her taste.

"We can stop if you want: all you have to do is admit you were wrong."

Seto watched closely as she ignored his words and tried to concentrate on the game, chewing her bottom lip in frustration. A drink-fuelled conversation during a dinner with her family a few nights ago had led to the declaration that she could equal him in any game. Well, those weren't exactly her words, but the sentiment remained; she could do anything he could. The ante was hefty; if she won this game then it was all out in the public that they were together.

Not even thinking, Seto moved his rook forward to bolster the line his pawn had established.

"Why?"

"Because you obviously didn't think this bet through."

"That's not what I mean and you know it. Why am I a secret?"

Moving another pawn and truly bored with the dumb board game, Kisara shook her head and gave his shin another kick as she spoke lowly. She kept her gaze on the chessboard and felt her cheeks colour; she knew he would be looking at her if she looked up, cobalt eyes asking her to drop the conversation.

It had been a long ten months to get this far and she wasn't backing out of this conversation or bet now. A stop-gap summer job in KaibaLand last year had taken the strangest and most unbelievable trajectory and she had somehow ended up walking around the closed theme park with the one and only Seto Kaiba. Their second date had been to the X Japan concert in Tokyo Stadium that had been sold out for months and she had even gotten to meet with the band members!

Seto moved another pawn and she heard a heavy sigh; she had tried hedging this conversation before but it had always been shut down and now she had him cornered. Unable to remember any rules governing the other pieces on the board, she copied his move and put the castle-shaped thing forward.

"You're not a secret, Kisara. I ..."

"Don't want your private life in the press. I understand that, but I hate sneaking into the mansion or out of restaurants with you. It's like you don't want people to know we're together."

Moving his knight this time, Seto frowned and shook his head. If the media knew he had a long-term relationship with a former-worker from KaibaLand, then they would stop at nothing to learn everything about her. Some journalist would eventually find out her address and Kisara would open the door to cameras in her face twenty-four hours a day.

"I'm trying to protect your privacy. You could be followed everywhere; work, shopping, university-"

"But I don't care about that. I care about you."

She blushed then and looked back down at the board just in time to see him taking one of her pawns off the chequered surface; she was surprised her meagre attempt had lasted this long – he was definitely humouring her. Eying the remaining pieces on her side of the board, she was running out of options; plenty of possible moves remained but she couldn't remember the rules governing the bigger pieces like the queen and the bishop.

Watching as she picked at a nail, he smirked and shook his head. Seeing the new girl selling stuffed Blue-Eyes White Dragons all those months ago was a memory he thought back on a lot. Roland had been in charge of hiring temporary summer workers for KaibaLand and had vetted this girl, along with others, from Tokyo University. But her smile and giggling had drawn him to her as she bent down to the same level as the kids running around the theme park. And a month later he had asked her out and she had agreed. Secret dinners, clandestine weekends away from Domino and countless excuses not to accept romantic propositions from actresses, singers and daughters of his corporate allies. None of those proposals had held a candle to the beguiling trainee elementary school teacher; he even liked her family – they were polite and unassuming of him.

Playful mood well and truly gone, Kisara stood from her chair and made for the door. Ten months of being in a relationship with him had taught her a lot. Seto was a man with a lot of layers and he still had issues to work through, she knew of some of them and she also knew not to push too hard; he would just throw up a wall and it would take her weeks to get past it. She knew of the orphanage and how he tried to keep all of his personal matters out of the public eye ... and she loved him too much to force him into a scenario he wasn't comfortable with.

Breaking his brooding, he looked up into the same unguarded dark blue eyes that had caught his attention in KaibaLand. She flashed an accepting smile and bent down to give him a light kiss, a kiss that said she wasn't angry or put-out. Grabbing her hand, Seto nodded his head and made the decision there and then; if she could put up with him for ten whole months, then maybe they needed to take another step in the right direction.

"Okay then. There's a fundraiser in the Hamptons two weeks from now; come with me?"

"T-the Hamptons? The American Hamptons?"

"No, the _other_ Hamptons in Shibuya."

"Oh don't be so sarcastic!"

Rolling her eyes up to the ceiling, Kisara tried to hide her smile and scuffed her toe on the carpet. Looking back to KaibaCorp's CEO, she nodded her head and grinned broadly; she needed to find her passport! Smiling even more as Seto stood to his full height, she felt like the luckiest girl in the world; props to her cousin for suggesting the summer-stint in KaibaLand! Tracing a finger over the card pendant, she felt his hands heavy on her hips.

"Are you sure, Seto? I mean, we can wai-"

A deep kiss was answer enough and she stood on her tip-toes to link her arms around his neck. Another kiss set the torrid pace and a hand slipped beneath her sweater to pull her closer to him. Breaking the kiss as Seto led the way to the door of the large library, Kisara giggled and turned back towards the chessboard.

"Wait ... king me!"

Grabbing the queen, she hop-skipped it over the king, past the rook and knocked his queen out of the way on the other side of the board. She had no clue about chess, but draughts had always been a favourite of hers.

To say he looked aghast at the bastardization of the board game he loved was an understatement. Giving the ruined gameplay and illegally-moved queen a true look of disdain, Seto shook his head and pulled Kisara away from the sabotaged game, not even giving the cheated win a comment. Though Kisara giggled and turned to face him again, smile wide as she laughed.

"I told you anything you can do, I can do better!"

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 **A/n- Thanks for reading everyone! xxx**


	4. Lifetime

**Author's Note:** Hello again folks! Now all of these oneshots can be read individually and are technically independent of each other, but I struggled with the prompts for Day 4 so I cheated a _small_ bit. This oneshot is inspired by the prompts " _Ten Years From Now_ " and " _Once In A Lifetime_ " but it can also be read as the Part II to the earlier chapter "Hero" - this is Kaiba's side of the same story. I hope you like it!

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Some things only ever happened once, or only had the chance to happen once.

Mokuba's move to the United States had been one of those things. With late adolescence had come with it a request to attend university in the far away USA. Complete and utter denial had given way to a begrudging acceptance and Seto had conceded that his little brother had to live his own life out of the shadow of KaibaCorp.

So at nineteen, Mokuba had upped and relocated to California to study a concoction of major subjects that he promised would aid KaibaCorp in the long-run. It had all happened in maybe three days; Seto knew if he thought it over too much, then he would have never let the kid go. It was then or never.

And Mokuba had taken it all in his stride, reappearing home every end of term to keep his brother updated. Once and only once had the youth appeared in the American media; a drunken video taken at a party. After that hit the newspapers, the younger Kaiba brother had remained squeaky-clean and excelled at his studies.

Four years had passed in a blur and Mokuba had arrived back in Japan full of ideas, taking control of KaibaCorp's media team with a barrage of new ideas and a fiancée on his arm too.

Surveying the bustling room before him, Seto Kaiba tried to keep tabs on the main players. This function was an annual humdrum bore that he swore he would cancel every year. Share-holders and fellow corporate moguls fussed around the room under the pretence of keeping up business relations and being friendly. In truth, they were all two-faced and merely wanted to be sure they knew of every little happening with each other's companies.

Rebecca smiled across the room at him and Seto returned the greeting. Hawkins had grown into every inch the genius her precocious childhood-self had promised. And KaibaCorp's newly-launched satellite would have been languishing another two years in developmental hell had it not been for his future sister-in-law and her invaluable input.

Seeing one of the more annoying share-holders lingering close by, Seto tactfully changed direction and made for the bar; he was going to need a supply of alcohol to make it through tonight without losing his patience at some annoying nobody.

Still, if Pegasus' tip-off about a new game development in the pipeline paid off, KaibaCorp would be reaping in the profits before the new financial year. He just had to find the women in charge of this new project and cement the details before any third party got wind of the promising game plot. Seeing Mokuba already at the bar and conversing with one of the ladies and her husband, Seto smirked; trust his little brother to be one step ahead.

But a chance like this only came along once. The ratifying of Duel Monsters from a dull table-top game and into a hyper-realistic hologram-driven sport had been one of those moments and he was proud that his idea of a duel-disk had made it to the market before Schroeder's more rudimentary hologram-box concept.

And this game Pegasus hadn't shut up about for two months seemed another of those chances. He would regret it if another company got the visual rights to the Egyptian plot instead of KaibaCorp. All it had taken was a word to his secretary and the sisters would be contacted tomorrow morning to skip ahead of the waiting list.

Watching the full dance floor as the string quartet began another melody, he watched with only a passing interest. Devlin had arrived a while ago with Wheeler's younger sister on his arm much to the disappointment of female guests. Dungeon Dice Monsters had recently taken off in America and Hollywood was starting shooting on a blockbuster centred on the game in the vein of Dungeons and Dragons. KaibaCorp's US branch were working in partnership with Industrial Illusions and Devlin to supply the holograms and CGI to be used in-movie.

In the ten years since he had first been forced into working with Muto and his gang, the dweeb patrol had somehow insipidly become part of a circle he considered something like friends. Well, that word was a bit strong, but Mokuba was thick as thieves with the friendship parade and the upcoming wedding next year was bound to result in invites for the entire rota of buddies.

A clumsy pair of dancers on the polished wooden floor caught his attention. The mismatched duo was almost comical to watch. The short fat man was a stock-holder of KaibaCorp, his stake in the company negligible at best and his attitude not the best either. The woman was the very lady he had been looking for all night though. She was the second sister involved in the new game he wanted to back, but that wasn't the reason he had unknowingly sought her out in this crowded room full of business allies and rivals.

Some things only happened once in a lifetime; he recognised that fact and accepted it. But some people had more than one lifetime to contend with, no matter how much he had tried to bury those memories over the years.

Her white hair and dark blue eyes drew him in like a helpless moth to a flame. The forced smile she offered the idiot dancing with her only made Seto walk faster, closing the distance between them. The fool stood on her dress and almost tripped her, but he interceded then and glared down at the dithering imbecile.

"Mind if I cut in?"

He smirked as the share-holder scampered away and she couldn't hide the relief on her face. Until she looked up and recognised him and stomped on his toe. But it was Kisara and he had seen how this had ended in one life. He was lucky enough to have two lives and this chance at a happy ending was one he would hold onto with both hands.

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 **A/n- Thanks for reading and I hope you all like it! xxx**


	5. Musings

**Author's Note:** Day number 5 and this chapter caters to the " _Person A is asleep and Person B gazes at them lovingly and thinks how much they mean to them_ " prompt. I have written a few scenes like this is Paper Roses where it's Seto doing the musing, so I wanted to turn that on its head and write from Kisara's perspective. I hope you like it! xxx

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Wrestling off the high-heels, she cursed the shoes and sighed with relief as she stood on the cool stone step. Searching blindly in her clutch-purse, she flicked her hair over a shoulder and prayed for her keys to surface from the dark depths of spare change, hair pins and drink receipts. But alcohol had slowed her reflexes and it was all she could do to helplessly move the muddle of bits and bobs around the purse.

Finally locating the set of keys, she unlocked the front floor and rushed in from the cold early morning. Dropping the stilettos by the stairs, Kisara shucked off her jacket and left it on one of the hooks by the kitchen door. Running an eye over the notice board by the telephone, she groaned and cursed to herself. The board was used to post any messages received or things to remember – it was usually covered with dates the security members had booked off to prevent scheduling them to work those days, or to remind Mokuba of the days he was covering for his brother at KaibaCorp.

But the note that gained her attention was the elegant cursive handwriting near the top of the board, almost above her reach.

" _Your mother called, ring her tomorrow_."

Of course her mother would call the one night she was out of the mansion. That must have been fun for Seto to contend with; her mother meant well, but she wasn't Kaiba's biggest fan. More than two years had done little to soften her mother's opinion of Seto.

Hearing a low buzzing in the living room, Kisara turned her back on the notice board and made for the open door; Mokuba had probably left his cell phone plugged in again; the youth had a habit of misplacing the device every other day.

Quietly padding into the living room, she smiled and found the perpetrator of the buzzing. The black phone fell off the coffee table and onto the carpeted floor, its owner fast asleep on the couch. Pulling a few bobby pins from her hair, she shook the tresses out and let them fall down her back. Tonight had been fun and Mai had shown her the best bars and clubs in Domino; they had laughed and danced the night away into the early hours.

And yet something had felt off; she had missed him. Seto wasn't the biggest fans of Mai's group of friends – of Téa and Serenity and the guys. Apparently they had all known each other well before she had arrived in Domino a couple of years ago. Joey often told her that Money Bags – his crass nickname for Seto – had never really liked any of them, and maintained their passing friendship on Mokuba's account. In her opinion, that just showed how little Joey truly understood Seto; he may have known him for years, but he didn't have a clue really.

Though he tolerated corporate events and had to show his face to such things, Seto preferred to keep himself to the mansion and avoid going out. Some media soul would inevitably find out and appear in the bar or club to ruin the night, so she hadn't asked him to join her on the night out – he didn't like going out and she was perceptive enough not to push the matter; he never forced her to attend the boring business dinners she hated.

Sitting down on the couch beside her sleeping love, Kisara watched as he slumbered on, lost in the simplicity of the moment. It had taken Seto almost a year to tell her he loved her and another four months to bluntly ask her to move in with him. That had been over a year ago now and she had only fleetingly once looked back. Of course there had been the obvious privacy incursions of reporters calling noon and night and one who even crossed the mark and followed her to work one day; a single call to Roland had seen the journalist fired by the next morning.

Living in a house where the security force came and went had been an adjustment shock, but not as much as the morning there had been a break-in threat; some rabid fangirl of Mokuba's had managed to get onto the mansion grounds and the security detail had closed around her in seconds. Mokuba had laughed it off and Seto had briskly swept the matter under the carpet and moved on with the day. She, on the other hand, had come from a very simple upbringing in a country village to the north and the reality of her relationship had hit her that day.

Seto had found her sitting at Domino's train station, ready to head home to her worried mother and gossiping aunts. She had realised just how much she adored him that rainy evening because he hadn't tried to stop her. One of the world's most powerful men had instead sat beside her and handed over her favourite souvenir. The silly stuffed Toon Blue-Eyes White Dragon had been a gift on one of their early dates at KaibaLand; Seto had won it for her on one of those claw crane machines after she had lucked out countless times. He hated Toon World though, especially the caricature it made of his Blue-Eyes ... and yet he allowed her to keep the dumb stuffed monster on a shelf in her side of his walk-in wardrobe.

The rain had pelted down and she had held the Toon Blue-Eyes and begun to cry. She had let it all spill out then; of how sorry she was that she had left, how scared she felt and the sinking feeling that she couldn't cope in the limelight. The train had pulled into the station then and he still hadn't tried to stop her. Instead Seto had nodded his head and apologised for loving her. He had kissed her forehead then and told her he completely understood if she had to leave.

The shinkansen darted away and she stayed where she was, stuffed duel monster in-hand and a heart weighed down with a mix of fear and guilt. Two hours they had stayed sitting on the platform, watching strangers come and go in silence. Three times she had contemplated boarding one of the trains, but her heart wouldn't let her. She was scared and confused and panicking, but she loved him too much to leave him.

So Kisara had ripped her train ticket in two, thrown it to the wind and never looked back. Crash-courses in self-defence had made little of her intruder fears, social media coaching with Mokuba and a public-speaking tutelage from Roland kept the insipid reporters entertained and everything else had clicked into place over time.

But she wouldn't change it for the world. She wouldn't change him.

Smiling as he stirred, Kisara sat closer and yawned as his arm found its way around her and he kissed her forehead before falling back into the land of nod. Feeling herself slipping into dreams too, Kisara smiled happily and thought herself the luckiest girl in the world.

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 **A/n- Thanks for reading everyone and I hope you enjoyed it! xxx**


	6. Longing

**Author's Note:** Day 6 and the prompt " _Longing_ ". This little oneshot is a shoot in a different direction than I normally go. I've written Blueshipping and Mizushipping in the past, so this is my first attempt at Effectshipping and I hope you like it!

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This wasn't good by any standards. They had been in the thick of it before, but this was a particularly hairy situation. From the limited scope his helmet provided, even he was apprehensive about staring down the apathetic Dark Magician.

He had always hated that idiot with his pointy hat and stupid staff. And he hated him all the more right now. A card appeared face-down behind the purple fool and so ended the opposition's turn. Looking to the massive counter, he saw their life-points were on the low side and frowned. Still, if he was on the field, then his master already had a plan in action.

His master called out a move, but the language was incomprehensible. The only thing he ever gleaned from the humans' strange words was his name and the ' _attack'_ – that meant it was time to be of use. But that trigger word didn't echo around the battlefield. Their master had chosen now to unveil his newest strategy; the space beside him glowed for a second before she appeared.

The others had spoken of her – this newest addition to the folds – of her mystic powers and how their master had won her in a duel against the creator of their kind. He hadn't been part of that battle; Kaiser Sea Horse had been the chosen conduit for that showdown. They were all oblations in a sense; the master used them to summon the White Dragon when the cards didn't play out to expectations.

Maiden with Eyes of Blue. He had seen and fought alongside countless additions to their deck, from the mighty Vorse Raider to the imposing Paladin of White Dragon. But this newest member was an exception for him – something deep in his chest panged for her immediately.

She had never been summoned to the field before and yet he _knew_ her. Those sparkling blue eyes and her embellished gown ... even the long braids blowing in the breeze seemed familiar to him. When she looked at him it was all he could do look back at her glorious form, a mesmerising smile lighting her features. Unknowingly walking closer to her, he was shocked when an invisible barrier stopped his advance. Teetering at the edge of his place on the battlefield, he banged a fist against the wall of nothingness, unable to enter her summon space – but he needed to be closer to her.

No! The opposition had said that word, the one that meant it was time to move. The Dark Magician materialised on their side of the field and raised his staff, the weapon aimed for her. And yet the bolt of magic never hit her. Instead their master called out more of his words, none of the strange sounds triggering an attack. The maiden looked to him then and gave a serene smile before dropping to her knees in defence-mode, one bangle-clad arm raised up to the heavens. A bright blue bolt of magic emitted from her palm and raced up into the darkening sky before it returned to the battlefield and crashed into the space beside her. The familiar feeling of power welled up in his chest; the forewarning that one of their legendary leaders was entering the fray.

The White dragon roared proudly and sent a blast of White Lightning across the field, taking out the Summoned Skull skulking on the battle hinterlands.

More of the humans' language was shouted from one side to the other but he paid them no heed; the maiden was looking at him again and he was lost in the fantastic feeling of being at her side. Never had he felt such a strange sensation. Pride, anger, rancour and scorn; these were all emotions he had experienced in a limited sense – their kind only felt these things through the master and the heat of battle. But this was different; it was something he had never perceived before and he couldn't identify what the strange heaviness was ... he just needed to be with her always.

" _I sacrifice my Kaibaman to special summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon_!"

But their master had no time for nonsensical romances between duel monsters and he had used strange words to call out an order. Looking around as he recognised his name in the command, Kaibaman saw the field beneath begin to glow and rammed his fist against the invisible wall that separated his space from hers; his legs were beginning to defragment into pixels.

Sensing the urgency, the maiden looked to him with tears in her eyes and laid a sad hand on the invisible partition. No, he needed to be closer to her! They might never get summoned together again and this feeling, this urge ... the longing in what he presumed was his heart – it demanded he reach her!

His legs were gone and the pixels continued to detach up to his torso; the special summon was needed to call forth another White Dragon, but he needed to reach her.

Something gave and the wall collapsed for a second in preparation for the larger dragon's arrival. But in that moment his hand found hers and she held onto it with all her might as though she might stop their master's summon from happening.

It didn't stop a thing. But she beamed happily at his touch and Kaibaman truly smiled for the first time as he disappeared into a pillar of White Lighting.

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 **A/n- This was really fun to write and I hope you enjoyed it! xxx**


	7. Memories

**Author's Note:** The prompt for this oneshot is simply " _Memories_ " which immediately made me think of a song from my favourite musical ... which I then shamelessly used as inspiration! xxx

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Midnight and not a sound echoed from the deserted pavement. Domino City had shut up shop a couple of hours ago and the last few stragglers were only making it home now. A strong typhoon was set to hit the main island of Japan before midnight and a weather alert had been issued earlier in the day.

Most of his staff had been sent home by noon to prepare for the onslaught of the weather front and only the vital staff had remained until evening. That evening deadline had passed a few hours ago, but he had needed to be sure everything was backed up and safe – if the power was out for a few days, then he needed back-up generators prepped to run KaibaLand and the databanks of KaibaCorp's HQ building.

Withered leaves skittered down the road, prisoners to the moaning wind that had been building for a while now. Common sense told him he should have headed home a few hours ago, but Seto had to be sure everything was ready for the worst-case scenario.

No one else was foolish enough – or was it sensible? – to be out in the streets as the moon shone down through a break in the heavy clouds. Turning a corner away from the main business plaza of the city, he lowered his head and pushed on through the building wind. Rain began to fall then and it was as if a pathetic fallacy was foretelling of the typhoon's arrival; the weather itself was bemoaning his decision to stay in the city until this late.

And yet there was someone waiting at the bus-stop further along the street. Idiot. At least he had the excuse of running a company to keep him out in this weather, but this girl was all alone in the middle of a dark city about to be hit full-force by an angry typhoon – was she trying to put herself in danger?

Shaking his head and concluding it was the woman's own naive fault, Seto Kaiba buried his hands in his pockets and jogged past the bus-stop, intent on getting home safely and making sure his little brother was safe and sound too. Roland had collected the teenager from school earlier in the day and given him strict instructions to remain at the mansion for the duration of the bad weather.

Thunder boomed in the clouds above and a bolt of lightning split the dark sky in two. More rain pelted down and soaked the quiet city streets in an instant, storm drains at their threshold. Gritting his teeth as his conscience flared to life, Seto turned and made for the bus-stop again. The foolish woman was someone's daughter or sister and he knew he wouldn't like Mokuba out on the streets in this kind of weather.

Pulling his phone from a pocket, he fired off a text to Roland and requested a pick-up; walking to the distance to the mansion in the worsening weather was infeasible, especially if he had an unexpected guest to deal with.

The streetlamps flickered in the wind, each failing light becoming a fatalistic warning. Reaching the bus-stop, Seto tried to wipe his soaked hair out of his eyes and called above the whistling wind.

"The busses aren't running tonight, haven't you seen the news?"

No one answered him because the bus shelter was empty; nobody sat on the bench inside the three-walled waiting area. He was sure he had seen a woman sitting there through the Perspex walls. Whatever – she had probably gained some modicum of sense and made for home, just like he should. Shaking his head, he turned away from the empty bus-stop and kicked away an empty soda can.

"You once knew what happiness was …"

Someone muttered close-by and he spun towards the voice and dropped into a fight-stance with his arms raised up in a guard, years of self-defence training and Judo coaching springing to mind. Call off the search and rescue; he had found the foolish would-be bus passenger. Not catching what she had said, Seto shrugged away his initial jumpiness and walked towards the end of the street; Roland would pick him up there.

"Do you need a ride home?"

Rolling his eyes up to the angry heavens when the woman didn't answer him, Seto sighed and walked on. If this girl wanted to play dumb, then that was fine by him; he was getting a lift home and she could fend for herself if that was what she wanted.

Another roll of thunder clashed overhead and lightning lit up the city for a split second. In that half instant, Seto halted as he saw the girl standing at the end of the street before him. Throwing a look over his shoulder, he frowned; she had been behind him a second ago. She must have run ahead without him noticing. Calling out over the wind again, he tried to quash the uneasy feeling creeping over him as he walked towards her.

"Look, where do you live? Are you even listen-"

Laying a hand on her shoulder, he lost his words as the girl turned to look up at him and he took a few rushed steps backwards. A well-timed flash of lightning lit up her features liked a ghost.

Dark blue eyes that stared out from beneath soaked colourless hair. The rain had saturated her clothes and her hair hang lank around her small frame. But it was the same face, the same eyes he had seen once upon a time in Egypt. Dreams and nightmares had plagued him after that trip to the ancient world, but rationalisation had banished the memories and immutable convincing himself that the past was the past had seen the end of the flashbacks.

But this wasn't a dream and he wasn't in the throes of some unconscious nightmare. This was the real world, in an actual city and on a tangible street in the twenty-first century. Maybe he had been working for too long today. Shaking his head, Seto looked to this woman and tried to laugh it off – he just needed sleep and his head was playing tricks on him.

"You … you're just a memory."

"When the sun rises, tonight will be a memory too."

She held out a pale hand and offered a small smile. This was it. After a life time suppressing all he had ever been through – abandonment, abuse, conditioning, back-stabbing, betrayal and working too hard – he had finally let his mind slip into an ebb of madness.

Her fingers touched his and Seto Kaiba jumped as a car horn sounded above the moaning winds. Looking into the glare of the headlights, he shielded his eyes and felt a rush of relief as Roland stood by the black car and beckoned him over. A confused scan of the area showed him to be alone on the street corner and Seto wasted no time and seated himself in the back of the car, not saying one word to his employee.

He had no words to say; all he had left were the memories.

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 **A/n- Thanks for reading guys and I hope you liked it! xxx**


	8. The Unquiet Grave

**Author's Note:** The final instalment in this project. Day number 8 and this oneshot is for the prompt " _Especially for You_ ". Now this little chapter has to be the easiest one to write, but it did strike me as the most poignant too ... probably because it was the concluding part to such a great challenge! I hope you enjoy! xxx

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Not another soul dared interrupt the solemn silence of the graveyard. A black crow fluttered away from a nearby tree and cawed its harsh warning out – the only disturbance to the sympathetic stillness of the occasion.

Winter was closing in fast and a cold breeze blew at the old woman, chilling her down to her bones. Looking down at the grave before her, she shook her head sadly and smiled a heartbroken smile. Too much had changed lately and she found it very hard to keep up with constant updates not only in technology but to Domino itself.

A distant rumbling gave away the telltale sound of a Duel Runner's engine. She could remember a day when walking through Domino City was dotted with the pavement spectacle of duels being played on the streets. Nowadays it was almost too dangerous to watch the motorcycle Duel Disk hybrids at a close distance. Something had been lost in the interim, some intangible sense of spectatorship that she revelled in when she was a much younger woman.

Looking over her shoulder, the frail woman tutted as she saw the three suited men standing in the shadows nearby – that would be the doing of her children or grandchildren.

Not giving her bodyguards another thought, she took a few small steps forward and felt her heart drop a little with each advance. It had been years now and yet it still hurt like a fresh bereavement every time she ventured here. Her kids would no doubt complain about her being out and about in the cold weather, but they could never understand.

He had been her everything. The intimidating CEO whose duel she had walked into … literally _into_ and through the holograms on Domino's business plaza. The opponent had tittered a laugh, but she had been frozen to the spot slap bang beside a massive Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Somehow she had managed to get herself out of the duel and that same CEO had found her at work in the local library three days later.

She hadn't been expecting to be asked out. But that moment of doubt was fleeting and she had never looked back from their first date. A happy life full of travels and dramas and three children had followed to complete the idyllic picture. Those three kids were adults now with their own kids and two great-grandchildren were soon to be born.

It was just a pity she had had to do it without him.

"Hello my love. It's windy and there have been a few small drops of rain … I still miss you."

Her Seto. He had been the one and only love of her life and the eleven years since he had left her had been an agonizing sentence. A life full of the stresses of KaibaCorp had caught up with her partner in life and he had gone peacefully in his sleep beside her so long ago. Now verging on her nineties, Kisara held out only for the promise of an afterlife in his arms.

The tribulations of family were well and good and she adored her children and grandchildren and her nephews, but life was long and she was tired.

The wind blew again and the Kaiba matriarch shivered beneath her expensive coat, colourless hair blowing in the breeze. Anyone passing by the cemetery would be forgiven for thinking her a ghostly apparition. But she was all too corporeal and the grief in her heart all too real every time this anniversary date rolled around relentless.

He had greeted her for their second date with a bouquet of white roses and proclaimed ' _Especially for you_ ' and she had blushed and refused to throw the flowers out even after they had withered on their stalks and her roommate had complained of the sorry state of the blooms.

Laying the poignant bouquet beneath the smiling face of her young husband, Kisara let a tear roll down her wrinkled cheek and traced thin fingers over his picture.

"Especially for you, Seto."

Turning away from the headstone before she let her old heart hurt too much, Kisara slowly ambled back towards her bodyguards. Her eyes saw someone by the trees across the graveyard, but when she looked for the tall frame with his blue eyes and smug smile, only a stranger looked back; her eyes were playing tricks on her lately.

Taking the arm the youngest bodyguard offered her, she smiled up at the youth. He was a grandson of Roland's and was a newbie to the team, but more of a family friend than an employee; Roland's children had been playmates with her own three.

Slowly exiting the graveyard with her little entourage, the elderly Kisara was deaf to the bustling city and the revving Duel Runners, blind to the loved-up couple who passed by and oblivious to the young ghost that stood by his own grave and watched her leave, waiting until the day he could smile at her again and hold her in his arms.

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 **A/n- Thanks for reading everyone and I hope you all enjoyed this little collection!**

 **Note:** I would like to sincerely thank **zelka94** and **reijiakabutt** for putting the entire Seto x Kisara Week into action. It was an absolute blast to be a part of such a fandom-driven event and a great inspiration to see all the amazing artwork and fantastic fics created by the project. I can't wait for next year to do it all again! xxx


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